December 17th

Today's weigh in: 189.4lbs.

Up 2.4lbs from last week. Surprised? Nope - I ate like crap last weekend and I got sloppy during the week. Despite doing all my workouts (and having an incredibly poor Yoga workout), still up.

Congrats to my wife though who is down 3.5 lbs. Kudos. Next week hopefully we can both celebrate losses.

December 10th

This morning I weighed in at 187.4 lbs. Down a total of 15 lbs.

Completed my 6th day of P90X.

December 6th - reflection and motivation

Well driving into work this morning I had LOTS of thoughts on how I was going to blog today and what that entry (or entries) would entail. Nothing like a morning full of work to FLUSH that down the toilet. lol Forgive me as I ramble, somethings may not even make sense - but I just try and do a brain dump essentially when I post. The thing that usually holds me back is my typing skills. lol

I was recently asked to share some pictures of the last time I had taken my personal fitness seriously. (I did share). Fortunately I still have those pictures from nearly 9 years ago. At that time I was pretty close to the same situation where I am now. I'm 39 now and getting ready to hit a milestone age of 40. Back then it was right after I turned 30 that I realized - WOW I am frigin FAT! For someone who was always very active when younger, I didn't like that realization. I had allowed myself to get from 150 - 160 lbs all the way up to 215lbs. What a HUGE jump. At that time my girlfriend (and biggest supporter) and I made a commitment to fitness and ourselves. We busted our asses and focused on nutrition and got to arguably the best shape either of us had ever been in.

That woman continues to be my biggest supporter and one of the best things to ever come into my life. I've been fortunate enough to marry that woman and now we have 2 beautiful (troublemaking) children to share with the world. It has been amazing journey with her. However, going through that journey we got off track. We allowed ourselves to get in our own way. We stopped working at it. End result? Fat again. That's really the bottom line. At the end of this past summer (August 2011) we again decided it was time to make our personal fitness a priority. We have made a conscious and consistent effort to do just that. You can say you want to do it for your family, your children, etc... In my opinion - the first person you need to want to do it for is yourself. If you can't be motivated to do something for yourself or WANT to do something for yourself, you aren't going to do it. My motivation came because I did not like being what I had become. A fat, out of shape man who no longer was looked at as attractive. That's what it came down to for me. Not knowing what direction to go, just knowing I needed a change, I started doing Weight Watchers with my girlfriend (now wife) and lost a ton of weight. Later, after I started slipping - I upped the ante when I saw an infomercial for BeachBody Power90. Ordered it and completed the program in that 90 days.

The program was no joke. It sells you an image with a promise that you can obtain that image (or something reasonably close to it) in 90 days if you follow the program. They show you tons of success stories of other "ordinary" people who managed to pull this off. The program works. IF you commit to it. Not just getting up and working out for 15 weeks or whatever it was. But going hardcore and getting your nutrition in line and eating the way you are supposed to. I did it. Well..... at first I just did the workouts =) Then after not seeing the results I wanted to see I went hardcore on the nutrition. I was bigger than I had ever been, stronger than I had ever been, at my optimum weight (around 170lbs) and felt FANTASTIC! On weekends I would do double workouts. I'd wake up, do a strength workout, go for a couple mile run and come home and do a cardio workout. A fitness level I had never been to in my life.

What happened? I reached the end. I did my 90 days. Although I looked and felt significantly better than I ever had, I didn't look like the cover of the program. I didn't have chiseled abs. That really frustrated me. Also, there was no "next stage" to the program. When you completed your 90 days, you were encouraged to do a rest week and then what? There was no P90X or P90X+, or P90X2. Yeah, I could have done Power90 again, but what was the point. In my eyes it had already failed me. I didn't get those abs I was promised and I was pissed!

I then turned my efforts to a different BeachBody product which some Power90 graduates were doing. It was called Slim in Six. I'll be honest, that program was ridiculously hard. I didn't think it would be because it was a woman teaching it (again - honesty here). Debbie whatever her name is kicked my ass. Unfortunately though I didn't see it as a graduation level from Power90. I started to lose the upper body size that I had worked pretty hard to get and from that I started to lose motivation. I kept at it for a little while, but my workouts were very inconsistent and eventually I just stopped. I easily found distractions and let those distractions become the focus of my life. No longer did I make time to workout. I started to eat like crap and it was a very gradual decline. Just like the boiling a frog theory. If you take a frog and put him in room temperature water and then start to slowly increase the water temperature until it comes to a boil, you will kill the frog and the frog won't even realize you are killing him. Well that is

essentially what I was doing to myself. Although I didn't realize it.

Here is where I started/looked like when I first started caring about working out (nearly 9 years ago).

I sadly do not have pictures of when I completed the 90 days. I've looked over and over and over, but can not find anything. It pisses me off, but hey, what doesn't? lol Here is what I do have. My 60 day pics. You can see the transformation and how much progress I had made in just 60 days. 60 DAYS. It goes to show how much a person can accomplish when given the right tools, information and motivation.

Looking back at these pictures I realize how far I had brought myself and I'm really proud of that. At the same time I look at how far I've let myself go and it gets me mad. I can't blame anyone other than myself. I did that to myself. Now, nearly 9 years later I find myself fighting the same uphill battle that I put myself in so long ago. This time with lots of different elements changed in my life. The constant though will be my desire to succeed and get to the fitness level I believe I should be. Not for my incredibly supporting family. Not for anyone other than ME. the pictures I put up in this blog are to serve as a motivational reminder of where I once was and until I feel I have surpassed that fitness level I had once reached I won't be posting anymore pictures. I'm OK with that.

Today was day 2 of my P90X journey. Plyometrics. It wasn't easy, but I did it and made it through the whole workout. I need to pick it up though. I need to push harder. Tomorrow is another day, another workout and another chance to get closer to my goals.

FYI - I love Scooby-Doo and yes, those are Scooby boxers. Don't sweat my shit. lol

December 2nd - new accomplishment

Well, it has taken it's sweet @ss time, but I have FINALLY hit a mark under 190lbs. FINALLY. Still....losing at least 13lbs of FAT and at the same time transforming some of my existing fat into muscle over 4 months is a great accomplishment. I'm not where I want to be, but still headed in the right direction and it feels great.

Today's weight - 189.2 lbs.

Workout - P90X+ Kenpo Cardio + Ab Ripper 100. About 46 minutes of exercise in all.

Tomorrow is my last workout for the week and that will be P90 Level 3-4 (Disc 2). I'm gearing up for a change in my routine. I'm not sure what I am doing next. It is supposed to be P90X, but I may just do a hybrid workout with P90X and P90X+. Just because the workouts in P90X are an hour long (minimum!!). I really don't want to start getting up at 4:30AM, but it's looking more and more like that will be the case. Whatever. I still have a goal to achieve and I'm not there yet. I can ease up a little bit after I reach there and get to a comfortable maintenance level, but until I get there it's got to be FULL THROTTLE.

Wish me luck.

November 22 - Lifestyle Change

OK - well I'll tell you this. It has been quite an adventure the past 4 months with finding workouts that work for me, eating plans, etc... and I am not yet done. My fitness goals are not met yet. I am still enjoying the compliments I'm getting though from the changes I have made. So keep those coming! lol It doesn't inflate the ego, but it does keep me motivated.

Someone asked me the other day, so what is your next routine (P90X by the way) and how long will you do that? (90 days for starters!). Then they said something interesting... "well, at least after that you'll be done". Done with what? Getting up before 5AM to workout everyday? Being more careful of what I eat & drink? Nearly eliminating my soda & alcohol intake? Does that mean I'll be able to start snacking and watching TV after the kids go to bed (8PM) every night? NO.

That's when it occurred to me. What I HAVE CHOSEN is a lifestyle change. I CHOSE that I wanted to be healthier. Look better. Fit better into my clothes. Make healthier choices for me and my children. Be someone that my children can look up to and not be embarrassed of their over-weight, out of shape father.

What does that mean exactly??? It means I'm going to continue to get up and do something nearly every day to stay fit. It means I'm going to continue to be more selective about my food/drink choices. It is something that is going to have to continue for the rest of my life... hence the "lifestyle change".

Do I like to get up before 5AM to exercise? NOPE. Do I like to exercise at all? Not really. Do I like NOT snacking? Egh... yeah, sometimes actually. lol Do I miss ordering a ton of snacky/appetizer foods and sitting my fat ass on the couch and just watching TV all day? YES I DO. The problem with that though is that there were too many of those days and not enough better choices to off-set it. Some people ask me "Do you miss the 'Dew". I'm notorious for my love of Mountain Dew. Actually, I don't. I mean there are times where I just want a damn Mtn Dew and I have one. For the most part though, no - I don't and I do typically now just limit it to one. Is the greatest drink ever made to man Water? LOL Seriously? No. It's good for you, it has no calories and as long as it's cold I'll drink it, but it wouldn't be my favorite drink by a long shot. lol

What I do like (LOVE actually), is the way I feel after I workout. I love feeling the blood flowing through my body. The renewed energy in my mind & body. I feel so much more alert. I certainly have a lot more confidence. I'm not going to lie... I do like the "pumped up" look. lol Not to mention being looked at by your wife and reminded that not only does she still find you physically attractive, but you look even more attractive to her than when you first met! I like being able to help people, it is usually at the expense of time with my family, but I do sincerely like being part of a solution. A lot of the help I have provided for people in the past has been an extra set of hands for physical labor. Labor that would leave me exhausted and useless for the next day or even longer. I can't say that I really get that way now. I can go help someone for the day, bust my ass, work up a ridiculous sweat, be physically tired - but still have energy to play with my children before bed. Still have energy to complete my day before I go to bed and re-energize my body. The next day, yeah I might be a little sore, but I can still get up and do my exercise and still have plenty of energy for everything I want to do. To me, that is pretty awesome. Maybe because it is a feeling I haven't had in such a long time? Something I haven't had since I was a teenager, but I have it now and I love it.

So in short, if you are "choosing" to workout/exercise, whatever you want to call it. Ask yourself some tough questions. What is the point? Why are you doing this? When can you stop? Your answers may just tell you that you have chosen a lifestyle change, one that will hopefully give you the feeling of satisfaction & reward you for the rest of your life.

A little update on my progress by the way: I'm only down about 12 lbs (started at 202 and down to about 190). I've got a minimum of 15 lbs more to go. Ideally though I'd like to get to around 170 lbs (longer term). I used to force myself into size 36 waist jeans & dress clothes. EXTREMELY uncomfortable. In reality I should have been in 38s or 40s. I'm now comfortably fitting into 34s. I want to get back to my size 32s. Again, a longer term goal. I've all but stopped wearing XL shirts. They hang off me and don't fit very well. They certainly don't show the results of my efforts. It's nice to be back into size large shirts. I dont' anticipate going smaller there. That is one clothes item that will likely stay at it's current size. lol That and my socks. lol It's a tough journey. Being healthy is not something that comes natural when you have lived an unhealthier lifestyle for so long. It can be tough, but it is very rewarding.

Wish me luck over Thanksgiving because it is my most favorite food holiday of the year!! lol

November 14

No idea what my exact weight is right now. I can say I weighed myself on Sunday (after a big night out with the wife on Saturday) and it wasn't good. I was up a solid 3 lbs. Serves me right. Time to get my ass back on track. I've got even more ground to reclaim now to get under 190. UGH. Work hard and shoot myself in the foot. That seems to be my motto. lol

Had a good workout this morning though and looking for another tomorrow. We'll go from there.

November 5 - weigh in

Weighed in this morning after everyone got up. With my shirt and glasses on 192.6 lbs. Without them on, 191.8 lbs. That is how I typically weigh myself (just in my boxers) so I'm sticking with the lower number. Psyched I have finally lost that first 10 lbs. The eating right is such a HUGE deal. I can't believe it.

November 5

Alrighty, kudos to me for going the whole week without giving in to Halloween candy. Yes, that is right. Not a single piece of candy.

It wasn't a perfect week by any stretch though. Monday night we had Cape Cod Cafe pizza and I had 6 pieces. Had another 4 for lunch the following day. Then on top of that went out to the Bruins game and we ate in the North End. I had steak, garlic mashed & asparagus. It was yummy. Oh and a couple of beers too. Then back at the luxury box I had more pizza, chicken fingers & buffalo wings. FAIL for me. The rest of the week I was pretty good with the exception of Thursday night when I had ice cream at 8PM. It was a relatively small bowl though.

I did ALL my workouts this week!! It's a Christmas frickin miracle! Gotta get ready for that P90X.

Speaking of which... I had ordered some Iron Gym complete workout set that came with a pull up bar. Got it. The pull up bar won't do. It just won't work for my workouts. Switching over to a new pull up bar. Now I just need to finish a spot in the basement where I can use it. lol

No idea what I weigh right now, but I know on Friday morning I was 193. Not too shabby. Again, a new low for me. First time in sometime I've seen that number. I was pretty good with my eating on Friday too. No Friday morning fatty breakfast. I just did my protein shake before work, had an apple when everyone else chowed. My chili for lunch. A granola bar, apple and some goldfish for afternoon snacks. Dinner was a yummy stuffed chicken (spinach, cheese & prociutto), pasta & peas. Nothing but water to drink.

It'll be interesting to see what I weigh this morning after everyone gets up. I'd love to be less than 193, but that probably won't happen. Even if I stay at 193 it will be somewhat of a mental victory.

OK - time to end the post. I'm tired!!

November 1

OK - well continuing to do the workouts. Last night was Halloween and I have yet to give into the temptation of the candy. Actually we had 4 left-over bags of candy (someone either over-purchased or was a little skimpy handing them out. lol). Christie and I each brought 2 bags to our work so other people who want it can eat it. We are all set.

Got up and did my workout this morning (still P90 level 3-4 strength). I've been feeling like I'm in a bit of a rut. I have been using the same weights now for about a month. Maybe longer. So this morning for somethings (like biceps) I switched to the resistance bands. I can create my own tension there and it felt really good. Different for sure, but good.

There is no question that I am stronger. NO QUESTION. I can feel it. I can see it too. I can see my arms are bigger and more defined. My shoulders, chest. Even my legs are starting to tone up. I can feel my lat muscles. Yeah, I know... they are actually there! lol It's the mid-section that is killing me. My issue there is one of nutrition and routine. Routine wise, I am simply not doing enough abs in my workout. I'm relying on the other elements of my workout to work them. In reality I need to do a dedicated workout for them at least 3 times a week.

Nutrition. It has been a struggle for me. I'm consciously trying. However last night when they brought over Cape Cod Cafe Pizza (MY favorite) I didn't do so well eating 6 slices of pepperoni. lol After I felt really bloated and fat. I don't like that feeling. That being said, we bought and paid for it so I've got 6 pieces with me today. I'll eat 3 today for lunch and 3 tomorrow for lunch. Try and make better decisions for dinner and snacks and continue to workout. Hopefully that will off-set it. That's my hope anyway. It isn't easy giving up the things you love to eat. Especially when it is so readily available. However for at least now, it has to be done. It HAS to be done. The bigger picture is at stake. The ultimate goal. Hit my target weight and be in the best shape of my life by the time I reach 40. I'm not there yet, so until I do get there I need to continue to make better food choices and work out as hard as I can when it comes time to do that (sadly at 4:45Am).

I've got about 3 weeks before I start P90X. There is some work I need to do in preparation for it. I must make some modifications to my basement so I can use the pull-up bar in a doorway. It's not a ton of work, but it's extra work. My goal is to complete that routine. Continue with my nutrition (if not get even better with it) and have the most fit body I've had in my life. Some people may not understand and I'm cool with that. At times I'm not so sure why it is so important to me. Then I look at my kids and see the strength I have for when I play with them. My 2 yr old who didn't want to walk the neighborhood for trick or treating last night. Well I had to carry her around to about 15 houses. Thinking back, it was easy. I wasn't tired from doing it. I wasn't winded when running with her in my arms to catch up to the other kids. That is a HUGE change from where I was 3 months ago. I like the way I feel. I'm liking the way I look. I'm liking the way my clothes fit (not there yet, but getting there). I want that stuff to continue. I want to comfortably fit back into 32 waist jeans. I want to be a positive example my kids can follow. So for that, I just keep getting up at ridiculous hours and pushing play and doing the workout. It ain't easy... but it must be done.

October 27

HOLY CRAP. It has been nearly 6 weeks since I last blogged. Yeah, not good. The good news though is I am still continuing my quest against my bad habits and starting to see some results. The biggest key? What I put into my body. Go figure. I've been an idiot for waiting so long on changing my eating.

I started this quest at 202.4 lbs back on August 1st. I've fluctuated up to 205lbs, despite working out quite regularly. I can thank my wife for that. She has been the inspiration to continue. Her work ethic has been unmatched. She is determined to see results and doing ALL the right things to get herself there. I couldn't be more proud. That being said, this post is about ME. lol

2 weeks ago I started to change my eating habits. I all but eliminated soda & beer. The only liquid intake I've been drinking is water & my meal replacement shake in the morning. Making some different food choices and low and behold I'm FINALLY losing weight. I'm weighed in this morning at 194.2 lbs. The first time I've seen that number in at least a year, if not more.

I'm still doing P90 Strength levels 3-4 on my resistance training days. However the other days (aka cardio) I've ditched P90 and started doing the P90X+ Kenpo Cardio. That with the P90 level 1-2 ab workout. That really seems to be working out well for me. It feels fresh and gives me a GREAT sweat. The abs need to be done. I am still far from a 6 pack, but my waist line is going down. I've gone from being extremely uncomfortable with 36" pants that have the stretchy waist to wearing regular 34" waist pants. They feel snug, but not nearly as uncomfortable as my pants used to be.

Bottom line - I'm getting there. Not there yet, but I am getting there and it feels great.

I had targeted December 1st to start my next quest.... P90X. That date won't work because it falls in the middle of a week, so I'll move it to Monday November 28th. Right after the Turkey holidays. I just have to get the basement prepared for my pull up bar because I'm going to need it!!! I'm finally to the point where I am almost strong & confident enough to believe I can succeed with that program. Looking forward to tacking it and turning 40 in the BEST shape of my life. Wish me luck!!!

September 13

Dont' know the last time I blogged.  Last week I worked out twice.  I worked out twice the week before that as well.  It was the last week of August/first week of September.  Difficult week as I was covered in poison ivy.  The week prior (week of Kiera's bday) I did nothing.  Literally nothing.  Did a lot of work on the house to get that ready for the big party.  You could say inconsistency has plagued me, but here I am still at it.  

Worked out twice this week so far.  Monday was P90 Cardio/Abs Disc 1.  Tuesday was P90 Strength Disc 1.

Currently 200.8lbs.  Literally no weight loss, but again - still feeling better about myself so that is a start.  Definitely stronger than I was when I wasn't working out at all.  

I've managed to increase my weights as well when doing strength training.  Still not at my strongest, but it makes me work hard.  My goal is to still be starting week 7 with P90 Disc 2.  We'll see how it goes.  

August 19

Where to begin since I haven't blogged in sometime.  Well, my weight still isnt' really coming down.  I'm still around 201.  I'm OK with that right now.  Not a big deal.  

Last week I missed Saturday's workout (sick kids).  This week I missed Monday's workout (sick kids).  I've tried my best to stick with the routine though.  I'm going to keep trying though and not give up.  I'd only be letting myself down.  

This morning I attempted to workout, but it didn't go well.  I didn't really sleep.  I think I fell asleep around midnight and I was up around 1 with Kiera.  Then 5:30 to workout.  My body wasn't ready for it.  I stretched, no issues there.  I was attempting to do cardio (P90 Disc 1 - cardio).  When it came time for jumping jacks, running in place, run lunges - I felt my lungs start to hurt with the jumping jacks because I was breathing hard and forcing myself to push through it.  I brought the pace down for the running in place.  Then came time for run lunges.  When I first started them I felt my back tighten up a little from the center of my back to all extremeties.  It took me back for a second, I took a 15 second break and then tried again and then it did it again, but it hurt more.  At that point I decided to listen to my body and not continue.  It is clear my body was not up for this workout.  It is tired, sore, I'm fighting off a cold (thanks kids!).  I'm pretty miserable actually - missing these workouts are not helping me.  There is currently no pressure at work (boss is on vacation) but lots of pressure at home.  The big party is next week and the house isn't even close to ready.  NOT EVEN CLOSE!.  Just frustrating I guess.  

OK - ending this post.  I wanted to make a concious effort to post and I did that.  Moving on.

August 12

Very difficult last night with sick kids.  Definitely didn't get up and workout this morning as I was up for about 3 hrs in the middle of the night.  Sucked.  However I was determined not to be sidetracked.  Did my workout tonight.  P90 Disc 1 Cardio - skipped power yoga, but did do abs.  Weighed in at 201.2 lbs.  

August 11

Again, despite not updating/blogging regularly I have continued to stay on my workout schedule.  It hasn't been easy, but I'm doing it.  

Not sure the last time I blogged, but today was P90 Disc1 Strength.  I kicked ass.  I did all the reps as I was supposed to.  However I upped my weights on my back & bicep exercises.  I still feel good.  After all that I still managed to play with the kids in the pool, mow the front & back yard at a very fast pace.  I feel real good.  Better than I have felt in a while, a long while.  My weight isn't where I want it.  I'm still over 200 lbs, but I look and feel better.  Better about myself.  I have more energy than I've had in years.  It's great.  Time to get some rest so I can get up early and do tomorrow's workout.  

August 8

Dragging @ss.  No doubt about it.  

Christie and I went out yesterday and we went to the CBS Scene restaurant.  Food was OK, but I still managed to over-stuff myself.  Didn't drink any water.  We also went to the movies and I had a box of Goobers.  

Didn't sleep well at all.  Probably fell asleep around 1 and up at 5 to do my workout.  

Today was P90 Disc 1 - Cardio.  Skipped power yoga and my stomach which was very upset told me to skip abs.  lol  

Weight this morning was 202.6lbs.

August 6

It has become clear to me that I may simply not be able to blog (aka journal) every day of this.  Yesterday being another clear example as I didn't have the time at all to mess around with that.  

Yesterday I was back down to 202.2 lbs.  I did P90 Disc 1 Cardio.  Completely skipped power yoga (probably just not going to do it ever.  lol)  Did do abs. 

 

Today I did P90 Disc 1 Strength (Sculpt) or whatever you want to call it.  Did everything.  

Honestly right now I feel really good.  I'm accustomed to getting up at 5AM, putting on shorts, socks grabbing my sneakers and heading down to the basement to workout.  Then just getting to it.  I was worried because today is the first weekend day that I had to workout and I knew I wasn't going to be able to follow that same routine.  I didn't get to start my workout until about 8AM, after being up for a couple hours.  That being said, I knew once I started and finished that first set of 15 pushups that I had this.  I knew despite not eating anything yet and not getting as much sleep as prior nights, I was going to do every bit of this workout.  I did.  Feels real good.  

Next workout on Monday.  6 days on, 1 day off.  I'm OK with that now.  Let's see how that goes.

August 4

I did manage to work out yesterday.  I was weighing in at a nice plumb 204.4 lbs.  That being said I did manage to do P90 Disc 1 Cardio.  I did NOT entirely skip power yoga.  However, after about 1 minute of it I decided another time would be best to work on that.  lol  I did also finally do abs.  The workout was really hard and I was still really sore from my "day 2" workout.  I was still happy I did it.

Today I did P90 Disc 1 Sculpt.  I felt pretty good.  There were definitely some things that previously I was not able to do a full set of and this time I did.  An example would be the 7-7-7 when you do 7 pushups with a very wide grip, then immediately switch to 7 pushups with close-in grip, then 7 normal pushups.  The first time I tried it on day 2 I did something like 7-7-4.  LOL  This time I got it all.  The dips, first time I did 10 instead of 15 and this time I got the whole 15.  

My weight today was an even 203 lbs.  I'm not really worrying about the weight at this time because honestly l'm just trying to develop some consistency here.  If I get to the point where I feel my progress (in weight loss & appearance) are not what I had hoped for despite my efforts I can guarantee you I will circle back to the nutrition aspect of things.  I'm just not at that point yet.  Personally I don't see the point in throwing everything into the mix at once and see what happens.  Next week will be especially challenging because Christie is gone on a much deserved mini-vacation for a few days.  I can't make excuses now though.  I have to find a way to get it done and I will.

August 2

Scale said 203.8lbs today.  Whatever.  F-You scale.  

Managed to do P90 Disc 1 Sculpt.  Still no abs, but it will come.

A new beginning

I started today at 202 lbs.

This morning I completed P90 Disc 1 - Cardio. Skipped the power yoga & abs due to time restrictions.

Overall I feel fantastic since that workout. Looking forward to tomorrow.